Arthur Smith, the recently dismissed head coach of the Atlanta Falcons, has been hired as the offensive coordinator for the Steelers. The former Titans OC faced termination after his third successive 7-10 seasons with the Falcons, with criticism stemming from his perceived desire to maximize the potential of players like Kyle Pitts, Drake London, and Bijan Robinson. Despite this, Smith still got the nod as the Steelers OC.
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In his first interview after acquiring the new role, Smith discussed the fresh opportunity, what he brings to the table, his experiences with various QBs, and his expectations for Kenny Pickett moving forward. Interestingly, the Steelers OC refrained from mentioning Mason Rudolph in the entire 7-minute and 38-second interview, although Rudolph played a crucial role in securing a playoff berth for the team.
It appears that Smith and the Steelers have made up their minds about Rudolph. As Rudolph approaches free agency, Art Rooney 2 has since expressed the desire to retain him, albeit in a backup QB role, leading to all sorts of speculations about Rudolph looking for opportunities elsewhere.
This omission might suggest Rudolph doesn’t align with Smith’s offensive philosophy. Smith prefers QBs with athleticism who can contribute to his rushing offense. He seeks shot-callers who can seamlessly integrate into his near zone scheme, a set of qualities that Rudolph doesn’t possess. Rudolph tends to prefer staying in the pocket and taking his time, a style that may not align with Smith’s vision for the team.
Known for his ability to adapt his offenses to the strengths of the player while maintaining a distinct identity, Smith advocates for a physical style of offense, explosive plays, and a focus on situational football, particularly scoring in the red zone. Given the Steelers’ youthful roster and Smith’s history with QBs like Tannehill and Matt Ryan, he might anticipate Pickett to be efficient, and release the ball quickly to playmakers, and prioritize ball security.
To unlock Kenny’s full potential, Arthur emphasizes the need to establish a rapport and trust between the QB and his new play-caller. He said,
“Certainly our offences have adapted to the strengths of our players but there’s a certain identity we want to have. Any offence I have been a part of, it’s going to be a physical brand. You want to win at the line of scrimmage but it’s also about playing the strengths, trying to create explosives. When I have a very smart unit because it’s going to come down to situational football in the NFL.”
Smith has been criticized for his record as HC in Atlanta. The team went 7-10 and failed to get the best out of their recent draft picks, such as Bijan Robinson, Drake London, and Kyle Pitts. However, as the Titans OC for two seasons, 2019 and 2020, Smith made them one of the best in the league, ranking first or second in multiple categories. They were 1st in 50+ yards pass plays and 2nd in overall offense, rushing offense, yards per carry, red zone efficiency, and 5th in third-down conversion rate, as per Steelers.com.
Their offense averaged 2.86 points/drive in 2020, which led the NFL and they scored TDs in 36% of their drives. Henry rushed for 2,027 yards in 2020 and Tannehill gave a CPOY performance in 2019.
Despite coming off the back of another 7-10 season, there is a wave of optimism around his hiring. Steelers Nation feels he is the right man for the job given his record as an offensive coordinator, and he will prove the doubters wrong.
Arthur Smith Gets Surprising Support from Steelers Nation
Three poor seasons with the Falcons didn’t deter the Steelers and Mike Tomlin from hiring Arthur Smith as their offensive play-caller and it looks like fans agree with the assessment. Fans are rallying behind their new OC. They asserted that given how he nailed his first interview, and how passionately he is talking about the offense, he seems like a perfect fit. Fans are willing to give him their support and patience, especially after suffering through Matt Canada. Take a look:
Fans wrote,
Others stated,
The Steelers showcased one of the worst offenses in the league 2023-24 season, ranking 25th with only 304 yards of total offense, averaging less than 18 points per game. Their offensive weakness nearly cost them a place in the playoffs, as per Fox Sports.
However, they do have exciting young talents in players like Pickens, Najee Harris, Pat Freiermuth, Jaylen Warren, etc. Despite this, given the contemporary emphasis on quarterback-driven games and offenses, Smith will need to extract the best performances from Pickett. Tomlin and the Rooney family still regard Pickett as their QB1, despite criticism.
As of now, it doesn’t appear that they are inclined to draft a new QB, so the former Falcons HC might need to do his best work with the talent he has inherited.
